Recently Diagnosed or Relapsed? Stop Looking For a Miracle Cure, and Use Evidence-Based Therapies To Enhance Your Treatment and Prolong Your Remission
Multiple Myeloma an incurable disease, but I have spent the last 25 years in remission using a blend of conventional oncology and evidence-based nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle therapies from peer-reviewed studies that your oncologist probably hasn't told you about.
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Stabilize Advanced Myeloma?
Can you stabilize advanced myeloma? Probably the most dramatic improvement in the treatment of newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) since my original diagnosis in 1994 is the ability of conventional oncology to stabilize advanced myeloma. When I say “advanced” I mean that:
What are the symptoms of the newly diagnosed myeloma patient who has advanced myeloma?
Bone-related Symptoms
- Bone Pain: Often in the back, ribs, hips, or skull, due to bone damage or fractures caused by the overactivity of osteoclasts (cells that break down bone).
- Fractures: Spontaneous fractures, especially in the spine, ribs, or long bones.
- Bone Lesions: Visible as lytic lesions (holes) on X-rays or other imaging studies.
Blood and Bone Marrow Symptoms
- Anemia: Leading to fatigue, weakness, and pallor due to reduced red blood cell production.
- Frequent Infections: Caused by a weakened immune system and reduced white blood cell function.
- Easy Bruising or Bleeding: Due to low platelet counts (thrombocytopenia).
Kidney Symptoms
- Renal Impairment: High levels of monoclonal proteins and calcium in the blood can damage the kidneys, leading to reduced kidney function or kidney failure.
- Foamy Urine: May indicate the presence of Bence Jones proteins, a marker of myeloma-related kidney damage.
Metabolic Symptoms
- Hypercalcemia (High Calcium Levels): Symptoms include nausea, vomiting, constipation, excessive thirst, frequent urination, confusion, and in severe cases, coma.
- Electrolyte Imbalance: Such as low sodium or potassium levels due to kidney dysfunction.
Nervous System Symptoms
- Spinal Cord Compression: Can cause numbness, weakness, or paralysis, particularly in the lower limbs, due to fractures or tumors pressing on the spinal cord.
- Peripheral Neuropathy: Numbness, tingling, or burning sensations, often in the hands or feet, possibly from amyloidosis or treatments.
Other General Symptoms
- Fatigue and Weakness: Often severe and persistent due to anemia or the disease burden.
- Weight Loss: Unintentional weight loss is common in advanced stages.
- Night Sweats or Fever: May be associated with infections or the disease itself.
Laboratory Findings
- Elevated monoclonal protein (M-protein) levels in blood or urine.
- Low albumin and high beta-2 microglobulin levels, which indicate disease severity.
- Increased serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels, reflecting kidney function.
I guess my overall point is that you shouldn’t despair. MM oncology can address those many health challenges… and more.
But don’t misunderstand me. The NDMM with advanced MM at their original diagnosis may have a long road ahead. I don’t mean to minimize the challenges you and your oncologists face.
If your MM is advanced at diagnosis, there is a good chance that you’ve had MM for years. Think back…have you been living with bone or joint pain for years? Perhaps you went to your doctor and he/she was not able to diagnose you properly. In their defense, MM is difficult to identify. Pre-MM (MGUS, SMM) can be even more difficult to find.
Stabilizing advanced myeloma-
As competent as conventional oncology has become when stabilizing the advanced myeloma patient, keep in mind that non-conventional therapies such as anti-mm nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle therapies can also help the patient.
Yes, you are managing a lot of health challenges. But please know that oncology can stabilize the advanced myeloma patient.
Email me at David.PeopleBeatingCancer@gmail.com with questions about your myeloma.
Hang in there,
David Emerson
- MM Survivor
- MM Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Understanding Your Outlook and Treatment with Stage 3 Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is a rare type of cancer that develops in plasma cells. Plasma cells are a type of white blood cell in the body. In a healthy body, plasma cells are responsible for recognizing and fighting off invading germs and infections.
In people with a diagnosis of multiple myeloma, cancerous plasma cells grow out of controlTrusted Sourceand eventually overtake the healthy plasma cells. This process depletes your body of much-needed white blood cells. As the ratio of cancerous cells to healthy cells grows, so do symptoms of the cancer…
Even with treatment, the 5-year relative survival rate for distant multiple myeloma is about 57%Trusted Source. This means that people who have that cancer are, on average, about 57% as likely to live for at least 5 years after their diagnosis as people who don’t have that cancer.
Can you live 10 years with multiple myeloma?
Cancer survival data primarily focuses on 5-year survival rates, so there is little data on survival beyond that time frame.
That said, research does indicate that with treatment, it may be possible to survive for 10 years after diagnosis, particularly for those who are younger.
Factors that can affect your outlook
The median survival rate is not absolute. Several factors affect your survival rate, including:
- Age: Advanced age can negatively affect a person’s survival rate.
- Cell growth rate: How fast your cancer cells are growing can tell your doctor a lot about your outlook. Cancer cells that grow rapidly will overtake healthy cells much faster. This leads to a poorer outlook.
- Kidney function: Multiple myeloma cancer cells will eventually cause damage to your kidneys. Your outlook will be worse if your kidneys were unhealthy prior to your diagnosis or if the cancer made a larger impact on them.
- Genes: Certain chromosome changes or abnormalities may predict a poorer outcome.
- Tumor size: The overall size and number of tumors can also affect your outlook.